POV David
April 7th 913 (2016)
A cold wind blasted my face and I sucked in a breath of mist-sodden air. I looked around, the blasted remains of a stone structure that seemed as if it had imploded itself scattered about. I could still smell the lingering scent of fire in the air and see the dying flames flickering underneath some of the scorched stones. My ears rang, as yet unaccustomed to my sudden appearance in my new environment.
I blinked repeatedly as the sun peered down upon me and blinded me, my eyes having been previously adjusted to the darkness of the plane cabin. The sudden hiss of displeasure alerted me to another person's presence. I turned, somewhat startled to see my younger siblings, Smith and Rebecca. Smith had fallen and he groaned as he pushed himself off the ground, his joints audibly cracking as he stood.
"Damn grandpa. Got anything left?" I asked as I cracked a grin.
"Shut up asshole." Smith grunted. He looked around, prompting us to do the same.
The remains of the building we'd appeared inside was located upon a small knoll on the edge of a forest. A well trodden path led from the building to a small town a few minutes walk away and beyond that a small castle. Small fields and a picturesque stream surrounded the village on its two closer sides. There was a small group of people that were a few hundred feet away down the path, they wore odd clothes and seemed to be carrying swords on their waist. But beyond the people of the town seemed to wear garb of peasantry, much like that of the Middle Ages.
"Where… are we?" Rebecca muttered quietly.
"Well… We're not in Kansas anymore." Smith replied dryly.
I probably would have chuckled if it had been funny. Unfortunately it was probably the figurative truth. "Well, we are aren't we?"
We stood, in a shocked silence, looking around. There were some odd markings on the ground, though some of it had been destroyed in whatever had brought us here, the birds and even the wildlife seemed different somehow. We were broken from our stupor as the group that had been walking towards the building originally stopped a few yards away with their hands on the hilts of their swords.
They carried themselves with an air of superiority, as if they had the whole world at their feet. Upon closer inspection the odd clothing they wore weren't clothes at all, but gambison. Only the man in the front was wearing anything that could be described as normal clothing.
"Who are you? What happened to the wizard Belisarius?" One of the soldiers called out, taking a few steps to put themselves between the party and ourselves.
I glanced at my siblings. They seemed as lost as I was so I cleared my throat and answered. "I'm David Fulton, I… uh… don't know what's going on…"
I scratched my neck as I tried and failed to understand what had happened to us. Rebecca had been at college yesterday when I called her, Smith was on deployment in Syria… I started an internship yesterday… Fuck! I wasn't going to be getting that job now…
"Sire… maybe the wizard's experiment…" another soldier muttered as he warded himself from evil while glaring at us.
"No doubt he angered the gods of magic and they sought to make an example of him." The first man replied. "I am George Barford, Earl of Feln."
Oh, so… was this the Middle Ages? No… perhaps we'd been summoned to another world? That seemed more likely... It certainly made me feel destitute… This couldn't get much worse, but now isn't the time to be glum.
"I'm David Fulton, these two are my siblings, Smith and Rebecca." I introduced them as I took charge of our situation.
"Sire…" the man began.
"Hush Bartholomew. As unexpected as they are, they were to be Belisarius's guests, in his absence I shall host them." The Earl said solemnly as he looked over the remains of the destroyed house.
The Earl turned to us with a sad smile, "Belisarius was a good friend of mine, and I will not let his memory be tarnished in the remains of his greatest accomplishments. Honored guests, I would host you should you be willing to accept my humble request."
I looked to my siblings but neither of them disagreed, Smith paused but shrugged while Rebecca sighed. "The girls are going out without me now…" she groused quietly.
"Then we'd like to rely upon your hospitality for the time being Earl Barford. Please take good care of us." I smiled, being formal could never hurt, best to be formal and only act in an informal manner at their discretion.
The Earl nodded, "Bartholomew, stay back with Edward and try to recover Belisarius's possessions."
"Guests, it is a bit of a walk to the horses I'm afraid, they're easily startled by fits of magicka." The Earl apologized as he gestured for us to follow him back down the path he'd just walked up. The man I'd identified as Bartholomew picked a few of his companions and began to search through the rubble.
The Earl pointed at the village, "That town there is Wolkwitz, it sits astride the Leiber river, it's a tributary of the mighty Lobau river further west. Most of our produce of the Earldom is grain and horse flesh."
The Earl chuckled a bit as we arrived at the foot of the knoll and we mounted the horses they'd left to graze. "I'm getting a bit ahead of myself… it's been almost three hundred years since the last heroes were summoned."
"Heroes?" Rebecca asked, still halfway out of the saddle until Smith shoved her the rest of the way.
The Earl nodded. "The Queendom of Monrovia was founded by Heroes such as yourselves. It lends to our strong traditions of adventuring amongst the commoners and lower nobility."
I glanced at Smith and he shook his head. Alright, he'll figure that out later then. Leave it to the infantry to do the unwanted jobs eh? … He'd wring my neck if I said that though…
As we proceed through the town the Earl gushed about its many noteworthy locations. "Ah, just down the main street is the Stuffed Boar! The best tavern this side of the Lobau! The Ale is fantastic and the company is the best around."
I nodded politely but noted several of the guards shaking their heads in disappointment. Smith was quietly watching the townsfolk with hawk eyes as they returned wary gazes. Rebecca was talking with one of the guards, and I… was stuck talking to the Earl.
"There's the local blacksmith, He won't make weapons, though his daughter will. But the armor is the finest around!" he winked before gesturing excitedly at a large stable near the town's small bridge.
"That's Gaston's Stables. They sell the best horseflesh this side of the Andrin! The family used to be adventurers before settling down, so don't mind their manners! Though occasionally they'll help new adventurers over at the local guild branch." he guffawed, waving at some of the townsfolk getting water from the river as we rode over its small bridge.
"Earl, I'd hate to intrude upon your hospitality as we are, perhaps you could help us find work? To repay your kindness?" I asked mildly.
The Earl chuckled. "Fear not… You are like the heroes of old! After my wife writes to the queen you'll likely be ennobled… though, there are few fiefs that are to be desired these days."
"What? No, I think you misunderstood me, my lord." I backpedaled, flustered and panicked.
"You heard me right David, we have a long and proud tradition of ennobling our heroes. My wife can trace her lineage back to the great hero Queen herself! It was Queen Bianca Vandame that started this great Queendom. I'll loan you a few books from my study so you can read up on our history."
I cast a glance at Smith and his jaw had clenched and his knuckles were turning white as his grip on his regions tightened. Rebecca had stopped talking and seemed pale. Finally Smith spoke for the first time since this morning. "Can we refuse?"
The Earl laughed. "Of course not! Who'd ever refuse such an honor?"
I barely heard Smith's mutter. "Anyone sane…"
I remained silent as the Earl continued to blather my ear off as we continued to follow him. Almost none of what he said reached me as I sat quietly. Where the hell had we ended up? What kind of sick bullshit was this? I had to be gently prodded by one of the guards as we approached the Earl's manor.
The structure looked like a scaled back version of the palace at Versailles, though the expansive gardens were next to nonexistent, the general feel of the architecture remained the same. Several dozen servants stood at the foot of the steps leading to the main doors of the manor.
"Welcome to Rosewin Manor!" The Earl proudly proclaimed as he dropped off his horse.